C COMPANY, 1 ST BATTALION, 506 TH INFANTRY FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER FROM CAMP CORREGIDOR, AR RAMADI, IRAQ GUNFIGHTER FAMILIES AND SUPPORTERS: Another month behind us and it has been a very fast pace month indeed. The Gunfighters have stayed very busy the last 30 days and it has helped to pass the time considerably. Of course, with every day that passes, it brings us all one step closer to mid-tour leave and inevitably back home from this deployment. February has been a great month for the Gunfighters; soldiers reenlisting to stay in the Army, soldiers getting promoted, success on missions against insurgents and the first soldiers departed as the first group to head home for mid-tour leave. Overall, I am pleased to inform you all that the Gunfighters are 100% on men, weapons, and equipment, the moral is high, and the men are anxious and decisive in their tasks and operations. I am very proud of each one of them and I encourage you to do the same. These men have worked long, hard hours in a place that continues to be dangerous and their actions have brought this city one step closer to democracy and safety. SSG Campbell and 3 rd Squad, 2 nd Platoon goes over a wall using another soldier during a raid Picture by photojournalist Guy Calaf The decision to reenlist in the Army while deployed is looked at as a big decision and we are honored that our soldiers are leading the pack in reenlistments; the 506 th is leading the division in reenlistments and we are excited that our soldiers want to stay. This month we congratulate the following soldiers for their decision to reenlist in the Army: SPC Nohelty, SPC Cruz, Doc Bernay, SGT McKeaver, and SSG Hiltibidal. I would also like to congratulate the following soldiers who were recently promoted and for some of them, it couldn t have come sooner: PVT Crump (2 nd PLT) to the rank of PV2, PV2 Warren (2 nd PLT), Chamberland (2 nd PLT), and Forbes (3 rd PLT) promoted to the rank of Private First Class, PFC s Blackwood and Morrison (both from 3 rd PLT) to the rank of Specialist, and finally, SPC Vining (1 st PLT) to the rank of Sergeant. 1
Newly promoted PFC Chamberland, PV2 Crump, and PFC Warren from 2 nd PLT Newly promoted PFC Forbes, SPC Blackwood, and SPC Morrison from 3 rd PLT The recent update on 1SG Edwards is that he is at home and going through some very painful rehabilitation to regain full function of his arm from the sniper round that struck him in the shoulder last month. He has been a great source of motivation for the men to do their job and his laughter and jokes have been missed. To 1SG Edwards, from the Gunfighters, How s that working out for you? Hurry up and get well old man. The platoons have now all been supplied with beds and mattresses for additional comfort in our barracks known as the chicken coup and the shoot house. We were all very happy to get rid of the cots and improve the standard of living just a little bit. The mattresses are about the size of a twin bed so a set of sheets would be a great suggestion for your next care package. The gym got a brand new shipment of weights so our workout facility is really coming along. Refrigerators and a couple of microwaves have also been installed into both of our barracks so if you ve been holding off sending something because you didn t know if we d have a way to store it our cook it, were good now. The craftsmanship of some of the men in the platoons has assisted in the making of shelves, tables, and they have put together a great game room. Later this month, with the help of Easy Company, we will have a giant MWR building complete with TV s, a pool table, a ping pong table, dart boards, card tables, and just a place to get away. I want to thank all of the family and friends back home for listening to the suggestions that I give each month for care packages. It is very easy to walk through the rooms in the platoons and see that you have all answered the call. The breakfast bars and cereal bars continue to be a huge success as well as the boxes of Little Debbie snack cakes that soldiers can throw into their pockets for their 4 hour shift in the guard tower. Anything individually wrapped is exactly what we need. Even though we have a chow hall that cooks for us, some of the men have requested simple additives for the food to give it a little flair (i.e. garlic salt, alspice, Mrs. Dash); anything that will give the food the taste of the U.S.A. Other suggestions for care packages is anything homemade; cookies, brownies, cakes. My only suggestion is that if you store these items in a ziplock container, place a piece of bread in with the cookies. The moisture held from the bread will help to keep the cookies and items fresh over the ten day trip that it takes for them to arrive to us here. Keep up the great work, the care packages are great motivators. Soldiers Rank, Name C Company, PLT 1 st BN, 506 th Infantry UNIT # 73700 Members of 3 rd Platoon playing cards in their room. APO AE 09381-3700 2
The Gunfighters have now conducted over 60 mounted and dismounted operations within the city of Ramadi. Our procedure is to name all of our operations that involve animal names so we have been creative and very successful on operations named Camel Spider, Ragin Bull, Fox Hunt, Blue Falcon, Panther Strike, Bird Dog, Cow Bell, Mongoose, Maltese Falcon, and Operation Swamp Rat. Each of the platoons has played a critical role in the success of each of them and these names will forever hold a place in our memory. A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to have been paid a visit from the traveling PX which brought a limited supply of items for the soldiers to buy. Unfortunately, the supply was quickly bought up and they were only here for a two day period. So, your care packages continue to be the only source of resupply for us here at FOB Corregidor. Continue to send spare items that we have begun to stock for all soldiers to use. Finance also paid us a visit last month to give casual pays from our monthly checks (maximum of $100) but since we have nothing to spend it on, the money sits in our pockets for the next visit from the traveling PX. On the next big visit, we are hoping to have a post office stop by so that we can send everyone back home a little care package ourselves. Right now, we are only able to mail items as big as an envelope for free. Any item that is bigger than a regular envelope requires postage. The weather is beginning to warm up a bit as well. We had been seeing the lows in the mid 30 s and highs in the mid 50 s but as the months pass, we will watch the temperature go up tremendously. In this region of Iraq, we have gotten our fair share of rain as well which turns the powder-like dust and sand into a giant soupy mud pit. I wish that I could get a video camera to show you all how it is to walk around in the sometimes knee deep mud that consumes everything from soldiers to our humvees and even 7 ton trucks. Pictures do not do this muck and mire any justice to its true form. I m sure that every soldier in this company has their own unique story about this mud. Once again, I am so privileged to have one of the best Family Readiness Group s in the Army. It is so relieving for a commander to have an organization back home that understands 3 1 st Platoon Gunfighters or Goatfighters, you decide! 1SG Klutts Corner: To the families of the Gunfighters back home, Thank You! Thank you for being strong, patient, and steadfast in your commitment to your loved ones. Each month there will be a Soldier of the month and an NCO of the month that will be recognized in the company newsletter. First off, all Gunfighters are committed to excellence and determined to do their part 100% of the time. There are on occasion, more often than not, that a few Soldiers will stand out and perform at an extraordinary level and this is the very reason I would like to recognize the following; Soldier of the Month: SPC JEREMY RIGGS. Jeremy has done an excellent job as the company supply sergeant. He works his ass off day in and day out for the Soldiers of Charlie Company. He is constantly ordering equipment and supplies for our Gunfighters so they can do their job with the best assets available. He can be counted on to do whatever task that is asked of him and do it in the most efficient and expedient manner so we don t go without. So with that thank you Jeremy for the hard work NCO of the Month: SSG PAUL HILTIBIDAL. Paul is the Go To guy to get things done. He is totally committed to his Soldiers and the mission. His patience and determination on the battlefield is a blessing to the Soldiers around him. He has continually set the example to follow and has a true devotion to the Army and its values. Thank you Paul for your dedication to excellence! God bless you and all the families of Charlie Company 1SG Charles Klutts Gunfighter 7
and displays patience and determination to get through a deployment with the unit. I consider myself very lucky to have a group of wives back home that has done so much to support the ENTIRE Company as opposed to their individual husbands. They understand the importance of recognizing and supporting the single soldiers as well as taking care of their own soldier. This month, the FRG spent their own time and money to put together Valentine s boxes for every soldier in the company and they were very well received by everyone. Thank you again Lady Gunfighters. I also know that most of the POC s have spent numerous hours on the telephone talking with and sharing stories with families. There is always a way that family and friends can help the Gunfighter FRG. Please contact Lori Johnson at (931)553-8809 or anyone of the platoon points of contact for more details. Additionally, we received a giant care package from the Currahee 506 th Association Members (www.506infantry.org) and the men in this company would like to thank the warriors and soldiers that came PFC Fryman and PFC Opitz (1 st PLT) before us for their support. From Normandy in WWII to Dong Ap Bia in Vietnam, from standing watch in Korea to the sandy outpost in Iraq, the Currahee s continue to Stand Alone, together. The care package was right on the money for items that the soldiers wanted and the contents of the box were empty within two hours. There have been many other contributors to the company and though I would love to thank you all individually, the list is quite substantial, so to all of the donators of care packages, thank you all. I can t reinforce it enough that you are all going above and beyond what it means to support the troops. Since I know that pictures mean so much to you back home and though my words can only tell a part of this story, I have decided to include more pictures of each of the platoons in the following newsletters. Please continue to give me feedback on how I can improve this monthly correspondence and what I can do to help influence the chain of information. Please take the time to enjoy the pictures. Words cannot describe what it means for me to lead these men in combat and what a privilege it is for me to serve next to them. I am constantly pleasantly surprised by their actions and the determination and dedication that every member of this team displays. This will forever be one of the highlights of my military career and I couldn t have asked for a better group of men, warriors, soldiers, and friends. But, there is always one more objective to take, a few more insurgents to detain, and the Gunfighters are off to continue our duty. From Ar Ramadi, Iraq; Joseph R. Claburn Gunfighter 6 Captain, U.S. Army Commanding Artwork by SPC Joe Oknowsky (HQ) Picture by photojournalist Guy Calaf 4
1 st Platoon 5
2 nd Platoon 6
3 rd Platoon 7
HEADQUARTERS SECTION 8